Room 12's Tardigrade research!

When we started thinking about volcanoes, we wondered whether there is anything that could survive lava...then we learnt about tardigrades!

Here we are going tardigrade hunting...

Tardigrades are tiny animals the size of a pinpoint, they have long, plump bodies and a funny little head. They have eight legs, eight hands and 4 little claws on each hand.

They can live almost anywhere but mainly in damp mossy areas or watery areas, they can live at the bottom of lakes.

They are amazing because they can survive going into outer-space, freezing temperatures and boiling temperatures.

We have researched them and found out that we can even look for them at school!

To find them you have to collect moss and lichen and put it in a petri dish, then soak it in water for 3 - 24 hours and after that, with a microscope  you may be able to see tardigrades in the water.

We have collected the moss and lichen and now will soak them and see what happens...

Here is a great link if you want to know more...